Reloading Thread

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Am I making a mistake?

>want to shoot more often
>only read articles and watched youtube tutorials on reloading
>want to cast and powdercoat own bullets to save money
>never dealt with molten metal before,but have welded
>start up cost for the equipment I want is 600USD for everything including casting and primers/powder

I could buy a decent new gun with 600$
Kinda poorfag since Im a student and only working min wage job,I want to shoot more often and spend less money overall.Plus making my own ammunition sounds cool as fuck to me,and im ready to spend the time needed to do it.

Am I going to regret getting into reloading just for the sake of saving money on ammo?

>>34005311
they say you don't really save money, you just shoot more.

Which makes sense unless you can turn surplus ammo back into money instead of shooting it.

What kind of setup are you looking at? Progressive?

>>34005311
yes
don't forget that technical skill is also needed

>>34005311
Just buy cast plated bullets, they're already cheap enough. Check out Rainier or Berry's bullets.

>>34005291
fuck that gif is sexy

>>34005318
Lee turret press or a single stage,not really sure yet.
Kind of want the turret because of convenience and the fact that I like how it rotates (dont laugh at me).
I have spare time on my hands when im home and I want to be careful about what I make,and to go one cartridge at a time.

>>34005329
If I can build a workbench and make an AR-15 Im pretty sure I can learn how to reload

>>34005346
Fuck casting man, just buy bullets and press them into cases yourself.

Casting is labor intensive and unless you work for minimum wage it's likely not worth your time.

Also,I was thinking of buying factory ammo if I have no brass available and using the spent casing afterwards.
Should I just buy new brass?
What should I be looking for if im buying once fired brass?

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http://www.brassbombers.com/main.sc


has good deals on once fired surplus brass

what calibers do you shoot ?

>>34005570
9mm,.44 mag/special,.308
Planning on reloading 308,.44 and any calibres i get into later on.
Dont really see a point in loading 9mm unless i cast my own bullets

>>34005291
I'm looking to start reloading 9mm and 30-06. What kind of powder should I be using/is there an option that'll work for both?

How the hell does one get their hands on SMP-842 (or WC-842) for reloading M855A1?

I tried calling the St. Marks plant direct, but they passed me around five different reps who had no idea how to sell me their own powder.

>>34005624
get a reloading book

General tip if you want to get a press:

If you want to reload single stage only and your goal isn't creating super-accurate bench rest ammo, there's no point in wasting tons of money on a single stage press. Get a Lee O-frame press and that will be more than enough for anything.

If you want to reload with a progressive press, on the other hand, don't be cheap and save up for a dillon 650xl or a 1050. There's an abyss between them and a lee (or any other cheapo press) in terms of quality.

>>34007526
what if i want to create moderately accurate bench ammo? and .357 mag loads

>>34007225
Boy thanks. I just figured someone here would know the answer before I sank any money into it.

>>34009360
There are so many powders available that all do different things,and a reloading manual is an invaluable thing to have as it will have load data for all your rounds.
Never stop learning and watching reloading videos if you are just starting out,theres a lot to learn but once you get the basics down its not that bad.
Powders are probably the most confusing thing after the basics,but reloading books have all the load data you need.
Most people buy a couple books,buy one from lyman or another decent brand and you cant really go wrong.

>>34009360
and if you really dont want to spend money on a manual

http://www.j-how.net/test/Lyman%2048th%20Reloading%20Handbook%20%5Bblackatk%5D.pdf

Theres a PDF version of a lyman one,but do you really want to go from your bench to your computer/phone every time?Just get a book and you wont regret it

>>34005624
>>34009360
There isn't a powder that you could use to load both 9mm and 30-06 (safely at least). Pistol powder and rifle powder are, in general, very different animals. Pistol powder tends to burn very strong and quickly to be efficient in shorter barrels, whereas rifle powders (especially good powder for 30-06) will burn a lot slower, comparatively speaking, since most 30-06 rifles will have 20"+ of barrel to work with, as well as far greater case capacity.

does anyone reload on a commercial scale. there's a place near my brother that sells reloaded ammo by the bucket. i kinda want to do something similar while i'm going to school for gunsmithing. at any rate, what volume do you guys get out of reloading on progressive presses.

>>34009472
how much does a bucket cost?

>>34009360
Google "popular 9mm loads" and "popular 30.06 loads" homediggity.

There are hundreds of different kinds of powders, and dozens for 30.06 or 9mm.

i'm confused on how gas checks, bullet lube, and powder coating works. if you use powder coating do you still have to lube the bullets? if you use a gas check do you still need to lube and powder coat?

>>34005311
Do you have a ready source of cheap lead? That's really the only thing keeping me from casting. Coated bullets from reputable manufacturers by the case are cheap enough for it to not be cost or time effective for me to cast and coat my own even though I would really probably get in to it.

>>34009519
they vary in size but, generally a bucket of 9mm reloaded is about 20-25 cpr. they get their brass from the local ranges and in bulk internet orders. they buy primers, powder, and bullets and reload on site. my brother said they used to sell lead cast, but had an issue with customers using them in the wrong barrels. they sell other rounds like .223 and shit like that.

Do any of you guys reload .308, .357 magnum, 5.45x39, .223, or 7.62x39? If so what is your lowest price per round? Trying to decide if it's worth it to get into reloading if i just wanna plink a shit ton with cheap shit

>>34009568
I do but its pure lead and Im not sure if pure lead that is powder coated is strong enough to not lead my barrels up
Im also afraid of casting because my dog likes to get into everything I do and if I hurt that fucker I wouldnt forgive myself
I only have a small backyard as a space for melting down scrap lead into ingots,I COULD probably make it work but its gonna be a pain in the ass to do it
I think Ill just buy plated bullets,I forgot they existed and I seem to have found a decent supply of the ones I needed.
Thanks to the anon that mentioned them.

ALSO do I need to resize the bullets I buy online?Im assuming yes unless I can measure them somehow when I get them to see if they work or not

>>34005624
You could probably use titegroup for 9mm and subsonic 30-06 but anything else is likely to blow shit up since the recommended powders have a huge burn rate difference...

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>>34009621
Usually they size them pretty consistently and list what they size to...
Black bullets international is my go to bullet company. They use the hitec polymer coating and are usually the cheaper option while maintaining quality. I used to buy a lot of xtreme plated bullets but they went up in price a lot since my last bulk order. I have also been pretty happy with palmetto projectiles but their shipping is a lot slower.

>>34007734
What kind of accuracy are you aiming to achieve? What kind of rifles are you planning to use the ammo you make with?

Bullets for .40 s&w and 10mm can be used interchangeably, right?

>>34009792
Generally... They are the same .400-.401 sized bullets but 40 usually ranges from 135-180 grain and 10mm can load heavier 200+ grain projectiles. 180 is a pretty happy medium.

>>34009621
You never use pure lead as it is too soft and has a low melting point. What is used to make bullets is actually an alloy, made up by 5-10% antimony, 2-6% tin and the remaining % by lead.

>>34009740
.308 Howa 1500 24" varmint barrel
Submoa up to 300 yards at least is ideal
Just for target shooting, not hunting

As for .357 mag, something close to the performance of 142gr FMJTC Fiocchi, which is what I currently shoot most often. I shoot out of a revolver S&W TRR8.

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>>34007526
Get a Lee pro1000 for pistol calibers and a single stage press for rifle or low living stuff.

>>34009823
If you have a bunch of once fired brass from your rifle, the lee collet neck sizing die has made a pretty good improvement in my group size (from one moa down to half moa) on my savage all else equal.

>>34009867
I've have some surplus german 7.62 casings and .308 casings from PPU and Federal. I heard that Federal brass is bad for reloading because they're too soft, is that true?

Also can I use the 7.62 casings for .308 loads? Will they work with .308 dies?

>>34009889
I don't have much federal but I have heard the softer brass means looser primer pockets more quickly than other brass. I've had decent luck with ppu brass but my favorite is Winchester. It's cheap and has good case capacity.

>>34009889
7.62 nato brass generally has a lower case capacity which means higher pressure for the same powder charge so you should cut your charge weight by about a grain... Learned that when I've had some super hot 175smk loads with lake city brass hitting mid 2800fps... I had to smack the bolt open...

>>34009952
Would I get a velocity decrease by doing that?
Speaking of which, how does A-Max compare to SMK?

>>34009823
>.308 Howa 1500 24" varmint barrel
What is the barrel rifling twist rate? I see that two variants of that rifle, one with a 1-10 twist and another with a 1-12. Knowing this is important to know which bullet weight should be used to achieve the optimal stabilization. For 1-12 a bullet in the 165-175 grains range is the best choice, whereas with a 1-10 barrel you can go up to 180-200 grains.

For the type of bullet, when accuracy is paramount you want to use hollow point boat tail and only that. For instance, Scenar by Lapua or HP-BT by Sierra.

As powder I mainly use vihtavuori. It's an exceptionally constant powder that allows for a high consistency in loads, available in many variants with different specs. For .308, the most commonly used are the n-130, n-133, n-135, n-140, n-550 n-150 (ordered from fastest to slowest burning). The only problem is that it isn't cheap. Living in Europe, it's the only decent type of powder I can get my hands on. You probably have a wide array of equally good alternatives in the land of the free. Refer to the powder dosage charts, start testing from the minimum dosage increased by 5%, then progressively increase the amount by 5-10% until you are satisfied with the results. Never exceed the maximum load indicated in the charts. Never go lower than minimum either, as it is as much dangerous as exceeding the maximum.

Primers: winchester LR, CCI 200 or 250, Federal 210m, S&B LR.

do people normally factor in labor when they calculate the cost per round of the ammo they reload?

>>34009967
I use my 168 Amax stuff for messing around inside 600 yards and the 175 SMK for stuff outside of that. The SMK is a lot more expensive but better. I haven't tried the hornady eld stuff, it might be ok.

>>34010270
>vihtavuori
Great powders just like 2x as expensive as others here in the states...
>>34009967
The increase in pressure pretty much makes it a wash...

>>34010270
It's the 1-10 model
Thanks for the advice

>>34010288
I don't because I find it relaxing and I usually do it while watching a movie or just chatting with the GF.
It's not like I'm using work hours to reload. (ok sometimes I do when I work from home)

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>>34010270
Also, I'm adding a few more things. These are probably the two factors that, along with choosing the correct bullet weight for the twist rate of the barrel, influence accuracy the most.

Use the brass from commercial ammunition you fired once. Size it by using a neck-only sizing die. This allows the casing to retain the form of the chamber of your rifle, improving its fitting.

Seat the bullet at the proper height. Proper height means that when the round is chambered and the bolt is closed, the surface of the bullet should contact the beginning of the rifling. To approximately find the proper seating height, do pic relate: saw the neck of an empty casing vertically, slide a bullet into it so that it protrudes a little, then slowly chamber it and close the bolt. The rifling will push the bullet back into the case. Remove it and measure to find the height at witch the bullet touches the rifling.

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>>34010409
good stuff anon, thanks
pic is my rifle

>>34010288
There isn't that much "wasted time". With a nice progressive press setup you can easily make 600 rounds/hr without much effort. Saving up to 70% (in my country at least). Totally worth it for handguns, if you shoot a lot.

>>34009604
It's hard to state exact 'costs' because of powder, the press, any equipment, etc.

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I work at a small ammo company as the technician
Ask me anything

>>34010651
well i meant just for the components per round not including the equipment and shit or time

>>34010669
why the trip.

>>34009815
Yeah I know that,I just dont know what to alloy it with other than tin or antimony

>>34009437
>>34009456
>>34009468
>>34009537
Thanks. I'm definitely going to be getting a manual if I decide to start reloading, I've just been poking around in these threads toying with the idea and that's one of the only prelim questions I wanted answered before I made a choice and committed to spending. Thanks all.

>>34010669
How come you don't make more .303 Brit? Please make more .303 Brit

>>34010669
Is it company policy to be a raging trip fag?

Recommendation on manual? Ill be into 9mm and 5.56 pretty much exclusively right now but will get into different cals as I get older. Even meme stuff like 5.7.

>>34010669
that tumbling holy shit

>>34012355
For starters, don't use third party loading tables until you are proficient in handloading. Use the tables made by the manufacturer of the powder, which are made with safety of use in mind.

Sierra and Hornady reloading manuals are probably one of the best.

There's also the manual that I use, called "Reloading" and made by an Italian guy with severe gun-tism called Gianluca Bordin. He went as far as to section every main commercial die and press available on the market using a CNC mill, to show how they work inside. He also tested every main primer brand available, making photographs of their flash length and comparative charts with the heat they generate. There should be an english translated version, but I can't find it anywhere.